Sister
by Geoduck
Summary: Machi Kuragi's relationships with her family have never been comfortable. And whoever said that rebuilding those bridges would be easy on her?


Bad Ideas Gone Wrong Productions Presents

Sister

A Fruits Basket fanfiction by Geoduck

* * *

She and Yuki were now a couple. But as wonderful as it felt, he was still not a prince, and there was no "happily ever after."

She had been invited to her parents' house a number of times. Sometimes with Yuki, sometimes on her own. She preferred visiting on her own, as she could not bear their coolly calculating looks at her boyfriend, silently assessing his wealth, social status, and future income.

And never, during any of these visits, was her younger brother present. She guessed that this was intentional, and did not dare ask about him, as that might make her look guilty of something.

Until one time. Her parents had left the room for a moment, and she had the curious sensation of being watched. She turned from her position on the sofa, and saw a pair of dark eyes topped by an unruly mop of black hair.

Machi felt her heart jump up to her throat. 'It's him! I haven't seen him since that day…' It had been a few years already. He must be almost in kindergarten by now. Did he even know…?

"Ah, hello." How are you supposed to start a conversation like this? "You probably don't remember me…"

"Are you Machi?" He was as frank and straightforward as only a child can be.

"Yes, yes. I'm Machi. I guess that means you're my younger brother." This was awkward. She wanted to disappear.

"Mom said you tried to hurt me."

With those words, Machi went pale. Had they been telling him this? Did they turn her into a monster in his eyes? "N-no. It's not true." Her eyes filled with tears. "I- I just thought you looked cold. I didn't want you to get sick." She closed her eyes in shame. This was the worst possible outcome.

And then she felt him clamber onto the sofa next to her and wrap his arms around her neck. "I knew you weren't mean! I knew you were a nice sister!"

This was too much. She broke down in sobs and hugged him tightly.

He didn't exactly understand the reason for her crying. "Machi? Are you hurt?" She did not say anything in response. "I'll make you better, okay?" He kissed her lips sweetly. "I love you."

And despite all the pain… all the time alone… The time questioning herself, blaming herself, suspecting her own motives. Thinking that perhaps she really **was** what her mother said she was…

This one gesture did make it better. It didn't erase the past, but it did make the present brighter.

The two were still in each other's arms when their parents came back. Her mother was agape at the sight before her. But before the moment was ruined, her brother spoke up. "Machi's here! And she's really nice! I wanna play with her!"

Their mother had a look of profound discomfort on her face. "Ah, but it's past your bedtime. You shouldn't even be up now. And Machi-san will be going home soon."

"Then I wanna play with her tomorrow!" He looked at Machi. "You can come tomorrow, right?"

"Ah, Machi-san is busy tomorrow. Sometime after that, perhaps." Machi could read between her mother's lines. "Sometime" meant "never."

And Machi was about to agree with her. To be a good girl and do as she's told.

But **he** hadn't. **He** hadn't obeyed. **He** hadn't lost his faith in her. He had reached out and taken a risk.

"N-no," her voice almost cracked with nervousness. "That isn't true. I have lots of time tomorrow." She looked down at him. "I'd love to come over and play."

While his smile almost lit up the room, their mother's in comparison was tight-lipped and artificial. But suddenly, Machi felt like it was okay to live with her mother's disapproval.

Because, in all future visits to her parents' house, he was there. When she arrived at the door, he ran up to her to give her a hug and a kiss, and to tell Machi he loved her.

And that was good enough.

* * *

Author's note: I hope it wasn't too sweet. But darn it, Machi deserves some closure in her family relationships. And even if she gets along well (sort of) with Kakeru, she needs one family member who loves her unconditionally. And who better than her baby brother?

Hope you liked it.


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